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Andrew Krech / The Citizens' Voice
James 'Red' O'Brien points out boxes of printing paper stacked in the warehouse he now supervises behind Pittston Area High School.

A warehouse supervisor's appointment exposed a rift in the Pittston Area School Board as some members claim politics rather than merit influenced his hiring.

The school board named James "Red" O'Brien, the former Luzerne County Recorder of Deeds, warehouse supervisor during a heated meeting last month.

"I don't believe he was qualified," board member Joseph Kelly said. "To my knowledge, he doesn't have any experience in warehousing. It was definitely a political hiring."

O'Brien served four years as Luzerne County Recorder of Deeds and most recently ran in the Democratic primary for magisterial district judge in the Pittston area, finishing second behind Alexandra Kokura, cousin of board president Charles Sciandra, by nine votes.

He supported some current board members in past elections. Campaign finance reports show O'Brien donated $100 in 2011 to "Team Patriot," which included current school board members John Donahue and Tony Guariglia, Kelly and Sciandra.

School board member Bob Linskey said he knew O'Brien was "going to get the job" after the former recorder of deeds lost the district judge primary.

"There was talk he would go for a recount," Linskey said. "I was told if he did not ask for a recount, he would get this job."

O'Brien did not force a recount in the primary. Under state law, he would have been required to pay a $50 deposit for each voting machine checked in the recount process.

O'Brien declined to comment on suggestions his hiring was political.

Sciandra maintained that "one had nothing to do with the other" regarding his cousin's win and O'Brien's hiring.

In the eyes of the school board, Sciandra said, O'Brien was the best candidate for the warehouse job.

"We needed someone who possessed the ability to monitor the inventory and the ability to digitally track the physical assets of the district," Sciandra said. "Red O'Brien had that experience when he was recorder of deeds for the county."

The district consolidated the maintenance supervisor and warehouse supervisor positions after they were left vacant from employee retirements, Sciandra said.

"Our goal was to strengthen the position and the processes that person would be heading," Sciandra said. "We also wanted to save the district $70,000, which we accomplished."

Despite the questions tailing O'Brien, Pittston Area superintendent Michael Garzella said O'Brien has been "doing a great job" in the warehouse.

"Right now is by far the most busy time," Garzella said.

'Best candidate'

Garzella said he and a selection board of faculty conducted interviews for the position, which was advertised publicly, and recommended to the board four candidates, including O'Brien.

"We give the names of people to the board who we think could do the job and we could live with," Garzella said. "Then it's the board's decision."

Board vice president Kent Bratlee said O'Brien impressed in the board's interview process.

"I sat in on all the interviews," Bratlee said. "He was the best candidate for the position."

The warehouse O'Brien supervises sits behind the Pittston Area Senior High School, slightly unorganized as its new supervisor settles into his office. Its two floors are filled with everything from boxes of crayons to stacks of chairs destined for children's desks. Shelves of light bulbs, pallets of boxed copy paper and even bags of salt for the winter months line the walls, filling a space large enough to hold several classrooms.

As warehouse supervisor, inventory and orders are O'Brien's chief responsibilities. The district's job description includes purchasing all school supplies at the best possible cost to the district and logging all incoming and outgoing shipments of assets such as custodial supplies, technology and copy supplies. Out of its $42.8 million annual budget, the district spends about $227,000 on classroom and instructional supplies alone.

O'Brien also oversees the district's maintenance staff. He is responsible for evaluating the performance of the maintenance staff, scheduling work for the staff and completing payroll.

He earns a salary of $50,000 plus benefits.

O'Brien said he has been on the job since Aug. 6, taking orders, monitoring inventory, and working to tag all of the district's "physical assets" for entry in a new digital database.

Sciandra said O'Brien's interview revealed more of his qualifications for the job.

"When we interviewed him we found he worked for a bank as a troubleshooter," Sciandra said. "I personally liked that he worked in private industry so he had a sense of urgency but he also had experience working in the government."

'Good fit'

O'Brien said he applied for the job after being "out of employment for a while."

"It's a great opportunity and I felt it was a good challenge," he said. "I felt I'd be a good fit. It's just instead of dealing with land records, it's inventory."

Last week, O'Brien was in the process of setting up a Skyward Data Warehouse program to catalogue and monitor supply requests and shipments.

"Over time I'll prove myself â¦ to the taxpayers." O'Brien said. "I like a challenge. Always did, always will, and there's a lot of people I want to prove wrong."

As O'Brien settles into his new job and continues work, those who have expressed doubts in his qualifications will be watching him carefully.

"It's a big job for him," Linskey said. "I'm sure O'Brien will be under a microscope to make sure he does a good job."

sscinto@timesshamrock.com, @sscintoTT

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